1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method and a system for supplying feed to animals, in particular hoofed animals, in particular dairy cattle, with the aid of a group of feed stations which are accessible to these animals.
2. Description of the Related Art
Animals can be kept in groups in a separate area, such as a pasture. A (concentrate) feeding facility (feed station) can be provided in this area, possibly in combination with a facility for milking the animals (milking station). Systems are known in which a plurality of feed stations or milking stations are located in such an area. These operate automatically, using a central animal management system. A feed station, which may or may not form part of a milking station, is provided with its own supply container for feed, with feed supply means and with its own local control unit (computer) to operate the feed supply means. Feed supply adjusted to the individual cow is possible here through animal identification and through the use of a feed program which is adjusted to the individual animal and which is calculated in a central computer onto which the animal management system is loaded. The feed program is recalculated for each new cycle, for example, every twenty-four hours, for each animal, using data relating, inter alia, to the time elapsed since the last lactation, and the milk yield. The cycle is divided up into periods, for example of 20 minutes. Following this recalculation, this feed program is transferred to each local control unit, and comprises a datum relating to the quantity of feed which must be supplied per cycle to an animal and a resulting feed dose per period, the period dose. In the transition from one cycle to the following cycle, no balance is usually carried over.
In each local control unit, a feed balance is recorded for each animal, with an additional recording of the period dose for each period. When an animal has received a feed dose in a feed station, this dose is subtracted by the local control unit from the balance for that animal. Via the control centre, the same feed receipt is subtracted by the local control units of all other feed stations from the feed balance for that animal.
The data relating to the feed doses supplied by the feed stations can also be stored in the central animal management system.
It may happen that one or more of the local control units no longer receive the data relating to the supply of a feed dose to an animal at the location of a feed station as a result of a fault. This fault may, for example, be a break in a data cable between a local computer and the central computer, damage to a transmitter or receiver for wireless data transmission or failure of the central computer (for example due to a power failure). The feed balance for that animal is then not reduced the local control unit of that feed station. As a result, the local control unit operates the feed supply means on the basis of old data, whereby an animal may be given more feed than that animal is entitled to according to its feed program. This situation may be repeated. This is undesirable, particularly in the case of concentrated feed.